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'Blocked pipes' spark chemical alert at Edinburgh plant | |
(40 minutes later) | |
A chemical alert at a pharmaceutical company in Edinburgh may have been sparked by blocked pipework, operators at the plant have said. | |
Emergency crews were called to reports of a small explosion at the Macfarlan Smith building shortly after midnight. | |
A spokeswoman for the firm, which makes painkillers, said it appeared pressure in the pipes had caused gaskets to blow. An inquiry is under way. | |
Nobody was injured and the firm said nothing harmful was released. | |
The building, on the city's Wheatfield Road, was evacuated and firefighters wearing chemical protection suits and breathing apparatus attended the scene. | |
The company's site director said the evacuation was standard procedure and a full root-cause analysis would be carried out. | |
Initial inquiries suggest a slug of material may have caused a pressure build-up in a piece of pipework, leading to an oxygen release through blown gaskets. | |
Macfarlan Smith, which is one of the world's oldest pharmaceutical companies, specialises in making opiate narcotics, such as morphine. | Macfarlan Smith, which is one of the world's oldest pharmaceutical companies, specialises in making opiate narcotics, such as morphine. |
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